Lady Macbeth Of Mtsensk Opera

Stalin was no music critic, but he knew what he didn't like. It was 1936 and the Soviet dictator happened to see a Moscow production of Dmitri Shostakovich's opera "Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk." The gritty story of a woman trapped in a loveless marriage who murders her father-in-law and husband to pursue a love affair with one of their workers, "Lady Macbeth" had first been performed two years earlier, in Leningrad and Moscow, where critics and crowds alike had made it a hit.

Stalin was no music critic, but he knew what he didn't like. It was 1936 and the Soviet dictator happened to see a Moscow production of Dmitri Shostakovich's opera "Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk." The gritty story of a woman trapped in a loveless marriage who murders her father-in-law and husband to pursue a love affair with one of their workers, "Lady Macbeth" had first been performed two years earlier, in Leningrad and Moscow, where critics and crowds alike had made it a hit.

UCLA Performing Arts has canceled tonight's performance of "Quick Lime," a play by the Dutch company ZT Hollandia, because stage sets may not arrive in time from Holland due to the recent dockworkers strike at West Coast ports. Spokeswoman Krista Fleischner said the sets are in Long Beach and would not be unloaded until early today. UCLA Performing Arts decided not to risk the sets' arrival at the Freud Playhouse, where "Quick Lime" is scheduled, in time for the 8 p.m. curtain.